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The canoe pushes through the mist, as if to tear it apart and cuta path for the hesitant rays of light unable to find an opening in the thick, hazy, almost impenetrable cloak. The haze seems to shroud everything in a dawn of diffused lines and shades, in which gnarled trunks and mud paths are sensed rather than seen.
But a insistent breeze little by little blows the fog of the languid dawn away. The shadows disappear. No longer is anything sensed. The forest is made visible, a grand, extraordinary green labyrinth… and an ocelot, wise, intrepid, silent, slips away from those adventurous men that travel the Madre de Dios river, a paradise of biodiversity in the southeast of Peru.
This is an exuberant and vigorous land that has not yet been punished by the destructive claws of civilization. The jungle is ferocious and intricate, hot and oppressive, but rich in life. In this area of the Amazon - mythologized by the Spanish conquerors as El Dorado - the greatest variety of animal and plant species on the planet coexist in perfect harmony.
There are three conservation areas in Madre de Dios of great importance: the Manu Biosphere Reserve, declared a World Heritage Site by UNESCO in 1987, the Tambopata - Candamo Reserve, with intact populations of several endangered species, such as the giant river otter and the Harpy eagle, and the Bahuaja-Sonene National Park, home to some 450 different species of birds.
Madre de Dios can only be described as a miracle of nature: A world of gigantic trees, powerful rivers and thick fog, in which man is an outsider, a strange being disturbed by the whispers of the inhabitants of the jungle as he walks its tortuous trails. Here silence never reigns. Here anything could happen. |
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Reception, transfer to the port to embark on a boat with an outboard motor, and travel across the Tambopata River for approximately 3 hours. If the weather allows it, we will go by bus to a native community where we will embark on a boat for just a 1 hour 30 minute-long trip approximately. On the way we will be able to appreciate caimans, turtles, aquatic birds, etc., and will have a cold snack. We will be greeted with a welcoming cocktail at our arrival in the Explorer's Inn. After a short rest we will set off on a short hike to a small lagoon, from where we will continue towards Sunset Point on time to watch an unforgettable sunset in the forest. At dusk we will board once again the boat and watch the caimans in the river with the help of torches. Once back at the inn we will have supper in the company of the resident naturalists, who will be at our disposition to absolve any question regarding the Amazon forest and the Tambopata Reserved Zone. |
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Early in the morning we will have breakfast and set out led by a resident naturalist on a 5 and a half-kilometre long hike up to the Cocococha Lagoon; on the way we will have the chance of watching exotic plants and insects, butterflies and multicoloured birds, monkeys and, with a little luck, also some major mammals. At the lagoon we will have canoes at our disposition for a short tour to watch the rich and varied wild fauna on its shores. Back at the inn we will have lunch perhaps rather late and will have the afternoon free to rest or enjoy some independent activity. |
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